Creating an Analysis Services Project

In the following task, you open Business Intelligence Development Studio and create a new Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Analysis Services (SSAS) project named Analysis Services Tutorial, based on the Analysis Services Project template. A project is a collection of related objects. Projects exist within a solution, which includes one or more projects. For more information, see Defining an Analysis Services Project.

To create a new Analysis Services project

  1. Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Microsoft SQL Server 2005, and then click SQL Server Business Intelligence Development Studio.

    The Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 development environment opens.

  2. Close the Start Page tab. On the File menu of Visual Studio, point to New, and then click Project.

    You can use Business Intelligence Development Studio to create several different types of projects, either from templates that are installed with Visual Studio or from templates that you define. The templates that are installed depend on which Microsoft SQL Server 2005 components you install.

  3. In the New Project dialog box, select Business Intelligence Projects in the Project types pane, and then select Analysis Services Project in the Templates pane.

    Notice the default project name, the default solution name, and the default project location in the bottom of the dialog box. By default, a new directory will be created for the solution.

  4. Change the project name to Analysis Services Tutorial, which also changes the solution name, and then click OK.

You have successfully created the Analysis Services Tutorial project, based on the Analysis Services Project template, within a new solution that is also named Analysis Services Tutorial.

The following graphic shows the Analysis Services Tutorial project within the Visual Studio development environment.

Analysis Services Tutorial project

Business Intelligence Development Studio Components

When a new Analysis Services project opens, Solution Explorer and the Properties window are visible and docked. The Server Explorer, Toolbox, Task List, and Error List windows are hidden and docked. Hidden windows appear on the left, bottom, or right side of the Visual Studio development environment, depending on where they are docked. To view a hidden window, position your pointer within the hidden window tab and it will reappear. To hide or unhide a window, click the Auto Hide button. If you accidentally close an open window, you can reopen it from the View menu.

The following table describes the windows that are visible when you open a new Analysis Services project.

Solution Explorer

Contains a tree view of the objects in the Analysis Services project. A solution can contain multiple projects; each project contains one or more items. A project contains folders for each type of object that can be defined for the project, based on information that is contained in the template from which the project was created. An Analysis Services project contains the following folders: Data Sources, Data Source Views, Cubes, Dimensions, Mining Structures, Roles, Assemblies, and Miscellaneous.

Properties

Contains the properties collection for a selected object.

Next Task in Lesson

Defining a Data Source

See Also

Other Resources

Defining an Analysis Services Project
Developing in Business Intelligence Development Studio How-to Topics (SSAS)
Defining an Analysis Services Project

Help and Information

Getting SQL Server 2005 Assistance